It Only Starts With Goodbye
by Sintari-Moons
Summary: She hates him with the same burning passion she loved him. He only seems to exist to punish her, she can't stand to be around him. And yet, the flame that he doused with ice cold water still burns with wicked heat in her heart.


To all those who know I don't write RaexRob; this is just a simple oneshot. To all those who will flame either here or in there minds: F.O.B! Oh ya, and Terra was brought back to life, Red X is a good guy now, and if you don't like my pairing's, once more: F.O.B!

Dedication: To whoever has an open mind. Or, to people who think that RaexRob is cute for fics, but not in the show or near future of the show.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that relates to Teen Titans, though I don't know if I'd even want to. To much work for one new episode a week. I also don't own "Candy Shop" By 50 Cent or "Scars" by Papa Roach. And I don't own "Starts With Goodbye" by Carrie Underwood. And just to let you know, this doesn't have a happily ever after.

* * *

Raven sat quietly meditating near the window facing the bay. Early twilight was illuminating the pale girl's face, several stars could be seen on the horizon. No noise could be heard apart from her steady breathing. Starfire was off with Red X, her latest criminal turned good by a wink from the stunning redhead. Now that they had found out he wasn't an actual bad guy, they'd been seeing a lot more of him. Cyborg was with Beast Boy at some kind of car and video game thing, and that only left Robin. 

Raven didn't know, nor did she care where he was.

He was 19, she was 18. A year age difference. Starfire was 18 also, Beast Boy was the youngest at 17& 3/4(he was very proud of his math skills) and Cyborg was the oldest at 20. However, Raven sometimes felt like she was the oldest.

Now, with cool light spilling across her pale features, Raven felt somewhat whole again, even after what had happened with _him._

She felt her calm inner flame flicker as the door to the living room opened.

"Hey." the voice almost burned her, it was so heart-stoppingly light. She wanted to strangle him.

Robin, the leader of the Teen Titans, had always been a very good friend to Raven, but a few months earlier, he'd been more the friendly. They'd kissed and it had felt so right, even when Raven accidentally blew up a vase. Oh she'd learned to control it, even when he snuck up on her and surprised her. All of the team had noticed that she'd been acting differently too, much happier.

Then came the few words that had shattered Raven's false sense of safety.

_"There's someone else."_

Funny how three words came stop your heart and rip your world to shreds.

Raven made a strangled noise as she fought the urge to kill him as she heard him get a glass of water. He took his sweet time, slowly draining his glass, wiping small water droplets from his lips. Raven blocked out the image. She pulled her hood up farther and bit her lip. No, she wouldn't give him the pleasure of forcing her to retreat, although it was _probably _unintentional.

"Where is everyone?" damn him! Why couldn't he leave her alone?

"Star with X, Cy and BB at car thing." she spoke in a clipped, monotone and didn't turn around even when he came closer.

"Raven, I need some help with Candy." Robin sat on the windowsill so she had to look at him. Raven nearly pushed him out of that window.

_Candy._ That stupid, blonde bitch.

"What?" Raven asked, a hand placed on her hip while the other twitched slightly, wanting to wrap around his throat and squeeze.

"She wants me to bring her here, show her around, she doesn't just want to go _out _anymore." Robin was looking like a child that had promised to clean his room as long as he got his treat. Robin had gotten his treat, Candy had probably banged him more times then Robin had kissed Raven, it was an impressive number. Candy was the name of a stripper, but Raven didn't know if she really _was_ one. It was probably a safe bet. And now Robin had gotten his treat and he was supposed to clean his room. Only he didn't want to.

"Why don't you just bang her in your room instead of some shitty hotel then? Bring her on over!" Raven knew that by the slightly smug look in his masked eyes that Robin had pushed her on purpose.

"Maybe I should." Robin was _really_ pushing it now. Raven didn't even answer, instead she turned and marched out of the room. When she reached the door, she turned back and was ready to throw him out the window. But with the smug smile and sunset lighting on his hair, all Raven could do was let out a shuddering sigh and stifle the sob that was rising in her chest.

"I hate you." she whispered quietly, not able to keep the tears from spilling over as she bit her lip and turned to walk out of the room.

* * *

Robin felt his stomach clench and turned around to slam his fist into the wall. 

'_Why_!' he thought with such fury that he was almost snarling. Raven meant the world to him, but he'd blown it by getting blackout drunk at some party and letting an equally drunk girl, Candy, "show him a good time" in the back of a nasty pick-up.

Robin could still smell the slight lavender scent Raven trailed and could almost feel himself getting high off it. She had been it, the one he wanted to go all the way with. Now he was stuck with some uptown princess who screamed that if he ever left her she would destroy him.

"Robby, don't forget our night together. And if you ever tell your sluty, gothic girl that you were punch-out drunk when I got you, your reputation is down the drain." the blonde had said sweetly when he'd gone to tell her it was over. Robin cared about his reputation, but he wanted Raven back. But he knew that even being wasted wouldn't be a good enough reason to have cheated on the girl he really cared about.

Shaking his head, Robin slouched down on the couch in the darkening room. Shadows climbed the walls and purple sunlight spilled across the floor. A sudden ring of "Candy Shop" filled the air. Robin groaned and wanted to throw the stupid phone across the room. Or better yet, out the window so it would fry in the water. He pulled the slim flip-phone off his belt, it looked awful to him. And there, flashing on the screen was the words, "Your Candy Shop." Robin flipped the phone over so that the terrible song would stop. It wasn't a bad song, but he hated what it reminded him of.

"Hey Baby!" the high, preppy voice of Candita Jones filled Robin's ear as he held it as far away as possible.

"Hi." Robin gruffly responded, shifting lower in his seat as the girl on the other end blabbered on about the charity dance the Titans were supposed to go to.

"...oh Baby you'll just love it!" the voice squealed, practically shattering Robin's eardrums and giving him a massive headache.

"Ya, uh huh. I got to go Candy." Robin muttered standing up and flipping the phone shut. Tossing it on the couch, he ignored the piercing shriek of the ring tone and skulked out of the room.

* * *

Raven felt the beat of "Scars" by Papa Roach on the radio pulse threw her and she hummed along with the chorus. 

_I tear my heart open, I sew myself shut  
My weakness is that I care too much  
And my scars remind me that the past is real  
I tear my heart open just to feel_

She was soaking in a wickedly hot bath, curls of steam rising towards the ceiling. A while ago, all the teens had gotten tired of sharing a bathroom and had each gotten their own. Raven's was all black marble with purple silk curtains and a swirling purple and black paint on the walls. The music drowned out everything else and Raven almost screamed along with it. It was so like her situation that it wasn't even funny.

_Drunk and I'm feeling down  
And I just wanna be alone  
I'm pissed cause you came around  
Why don't you just go home  
Cause you channel all your pain  
And I can't help you fix yourself  
You're making me insane  
All I can say is_

Raven glanced over at the half-empty bottle of dark purple liquid on the black counter. Not alcohol, she disliked the taste of that foul substance too much to drink as much as she had of the purple stuff. At home this was the strongest substance to drink, much as tequila shots were strong on Earth. It made her head fuzzy and her thoughts were supposed to go away. The liquid acted like meditating, only in large doses it was deadly, ceasing brain activity. Raven had only had half a bottle, about a quarter away from making her really tipsy, but enough to make her scream in a bathroom that magnified her voice to a shriek.

_I tear my heart open, I sew myself shut  
My weakness is that I care too much  
And our scars remind us that the past is real  
I tear my heart open just to feel_

Raven numbly grabbed a small black glass bottle and poured a shimmering silver fluid into her palm. She massaged it into her scalp and sunk under the black bubbles. They had been a gift from Beast Boy at Christmas, a special mixture that smelled like roses and tea. The cloth bag read "Back in Bubble Black."

_I tried to help you once  
Against my own advice  
I saw you going down  
But you never realized  
That you're drowning in the water  
So I offered you my hand  
Compassions in my nature  
Tonight is our last stand_

"Last stand, perfect." Raven murmured, her pale face barely poking out of the black mass. The song crashed to an end and Raven used a small tendril of energy to turn off the radio. Stepping out of the polished black tub she grabbed a fluffy red towel and wrapped it around her body. The towels were the only thing in the whole room that had colors other then black or purple, a nice contrast Raven thought.

Reaching onto one of the shelves Raven grabbed a comb and began to untangle the knots from her hair. It was longer, like in the vision she'd had with Slade. But now it was not jagged and all one length. Once her hair was silky smooth, Raven stepped out of the steamy room and opened the door to go into her room. She walked over to her closet, small water droplets beading from her hair and sliding down her back. Raven looked at the clock and sighed. It had been 5 when she'd gone in and thanks to almost falling asleep and the drink; it was now 7:15. In half an hour they'd leave for the ball thing. Raven grabbed the dress she'd bought weeks ago with Starfire and pulled it on. She locked herself back in the bathroom as a knock sounded on her main door.

"Go away!" she shouted threw both closed doors, turning up the hair dryer to blasting and sighing as the second knock that usually came didn't. The heat cleared her head and Raven set about something she hadn't done since Boy Blunder had dumped her a few months ago. She was getting ready for a date.

* * *

Robin walked away from Raven's door, his hands crammed into his jeans pockets. Along with separate bathrooms, the Titans had agreed that casual clothing was wearable in the Tower. Now, his only chance to talk to Raven was gone. He'd been supposed to tell her that they were leaving in 30 minutes, but she'd be even more pissed off if he knocked again. Taking a left turn down the hall, he passed Starfire floating past him, her red hair damp and sticking to her bare shoulders. It was August and the heat was intense, even at night. 

"Hello Robin." Starfire managed an exhausted smile. She had been sparring in the gym with Red X, also known as Xavier, for the last hour. She was sweating and wearing a dark gray sports bra and short gym shorts to combat the heat as well as her boyfriend.

"Hey Star." Robin mumbled, brushing past the alien without so much as a backwards glance. She'd once been his object of affection. That is, until he saw Raven in a bikini. It wasn't that he jumped from girl to girl, actually before both Titaness's he had, but Raven had looked so beautiful. It had been a dare, Raven had almost sent Beast Boy to hell until it froze over for that one, but she did it. A lilac swimsuit with a black raven stitched on the boy shorts. And Robin had loved her ever since. With a sigh, the Boy Wonder went to his room, dragging his feet and wondering how he'd ever live threw the night.

* * *

"We are absolutely leaving in five minutes! Even if you still got yawl's hair in curlers, you're gunna get your butt in the car!" Cyborg's voice boomed out in every corner of the tower and no one moved. With only two minutes left in the countdown, his voice came on the speaker again. 

"I swear I'll kick your ass into that car if you don't get in it on your own! Or I'll just start watching security videos and telling yawl's secrets!" the booming laughter echoed in the now empty rooms. Everyone was in the car, lest it not be a joke. The last time Cyborg had said he was going to tell secrets, Robin and Raven had been caught kissing, Beast Boy had been watching Barney, and Starfire was left out because she never did anything wrong.

Everyone was in the car except Raven. Cyborg sighed and started the car. He knew she'd come, they all did. Suddenly the door to the garage opened and Raven walked down the stairs. Robin felt his breath give away, but didn't let on. He was in the front seat, arms folded over the expensive Armani tux Candy had insisted they buy when he took her looking for a dress all last week.

Raven glided down the steps and jumped into the car in the backseat with Starfire and Beast Boy, ignoring the glance she got from both. Starfire's was happy for her friend, wearing the beautiful gown they'd picked out together. The bodice was fitted like a corset, with black lace over purple underneath. The skirt was billowing, black gauze over purple once again. A black gauze wrap was placed delicately over her bare shoulders. It was all silk and glowing, like how Raven's hair and skin looked. Raven had her hair pilled up on her head in an intricate bun, two small tendrils curling down by her face. Light lilac eye shadow that sparkled even in the faint light was sparsely spread over her lids, a lovely dark red color on her lips. Her long eyelashes, heightened by a little mascara, framed her violet eyes. Beast Boy's gaze was of pure, _'Wow she looks hot._'

The car ride was long and tense, with Robin staring directly ahead and Raven looking out the window. The air conditioning could only be up so high because Starfire was wearing her hair down, with the exception of a twist of small braids that made a crown around her head, and didn't want it messed up. Her dress was a breath taking emerald green that swirled around her ankles because of her height and high heels. It was form-fitting and strapless, though gauze ran from between her middle and ring fingers up to sew into the dress. Swirling bead patterns decorated the bodice.

Beast Boy wore an Armani tux as well as Robin, though his was already slightly ruffled. His date wouldn't care though, Terra was likely to be slightly rumpled as well. And Cyborg, well, he looked exactly the same as he and his date, Bumblebee, were excused from the ball. He was dropping them off only because Bee and him were going to the movie theater just a few blocks down from City Hall where this was all taking place.

"Here we are y'all!" he called out a few stressful miles later. All four teens spilled out of the car and waved as Cyborg sped off to meet Bumblebee. Then Beast Boy bolted to meet Terra, who was waving franticly from the steps up to the brightly lit building. She was wearing a gorgeous lemon yellow dress that had a low V-neck and long bell sleeves. It only went down to about her knees, but she filled it out alright for being so slim. Starfire pulled Raven towards Xavier who was standing beside a column, his black hair messy as always. It fell into deep sea-green eyes, the kind that Starfire called pools that she fell into all the time. Raven didn't protest as she pulled her skirt up enough to climb the steps in her heels. Starfire was already by Xavier by the time Raven caught up

"Hey Red." Xavier murmured, pulling Starfire in close enough to give her a quick peck on the cheek. Starfire laughed and blushed, though Raven could tell she enjoyed being the girlfriend of such a handsome and charming guy.

"And the ever charming Raven, lovely to see you again." Xavier was always soft-spoken and as he gently kissed Raven's hand, the empath couldn't help but blush as well.

"Let's go in guys." Starfire laughed, grabbing Raven and Xavier and pulling them in. But Raven saw what Starfire was really pulling them away from. Candy was prowling her way towards Robin.

* * *

"Robin!" the screech nearly split his head but Robin forced a smile that could have passed for a smile from someone who was having there internal organs re-arranged without being knocked out first. 

"Hey Candy." he said threw clenched teeth, watching as she materialized out of the crowd. Her long, pale, platinum blonde hair was half held up with ebony chopsticks, her slinky black cocktail dress could have been almost considered incredibly sluty had her incredibly rich father not paid for the whole affair.

"Come on Baby, we have to get up to where Daddy is, he's gunna have the band play the first dance soon." the blonde, who never ever ran or broke a sweat, and yet still was very slim ((-cough, cough, plastic surgery! cough, cough)), pulled Robin along with her with incredible force. Soon they were in the building and up at the front of a huge crowd. Robin tuned out Candy's dad and after what felt like hours, music began to fill the room.

"Let's go dance Boo." Robin had no choice as he was forcibly taken onto the floor where every action felt numb. He caught a glance of Terra and Beast Boy swirling around in a mixture of yellow, black, and green. Then he saw Starfire and Xavier, slowly shuffling together. Candy saw them too and tried to mimic there slow, love-filled actions. But what she needed was for Robin to love her back for the movements to actually look more like dancing then her trying to grind him.

"Candy, I'm going to get some punch, do you want any?" Robin didn't wait for the answer, he bolted for the slightly crowded buffet table. Reaching the punch bowl, he saw Starfire was already there.

"How's it going Star?" Robin asked, grabbing a glass full of ruby liquid.

"Fantastic, Xavier and Raven are enjoying a dance while I take a break." The red-head was almost laughing, but then she watched Candy come over. The laugh quickly turned to a scowl.

"Robby, Baby, I don't want punch, I want to dance." She grabbed the Boy Wonder's arm and started to pull. Robin cast Starfire a pleading glance but she gave him a look that clearly said, 'You got yourself into this, I'm not helping you.'

Robin sighed as the band continued to play and he was forced to stomach another dance with the lead star of the horror movie of his life, "Attack of the Preppy Blonde Slut."

* * *

Raven danced along with Xavier and felt that the night could almost be counted good, except for the fact that she always could see Robin threw the crowd. 

"Thanks for the dance Xavier." Raven said as the song came to an end.

"Not a problem _mon ami sombre_." Xavier bowed and kissed Raven's hand before vanishing to find Starfire. Raven sighed and wished he hadn't said that. _My dark friend_ was not how she wanted to be looked at. Raven wanted to be beautiful, truly gorgeous like Starfire. She didn't want the mobs or crazed fans, but an adorable boy like Xavier would suffice. She wanted to be noticed as more then "that hot Goth chic" or "the freaky hot Titan."

She slipped threw a crowd only to find someone grabbing her arm.

"Time to get up front missy." a woman in her mid-thirties pulled Raven along in a death grip towards the stage set up at the front of the ballroom. Raven didn't fight it, she knew enough about death to see that it didn't work if you struggled.

"And now, we will have the Titans dance with the winners of the raffle and then the surprise poll." Candy's dad, Mr. Jones, called into the microphone. All four Titans were lined up, each feeling very much like cattle at auction.

"First is Starfire, Princess of, um, well, some other planet!" Starfire was shoved forwards and tried to look happy, even when the winner was one of Candy's disgusting brothers, Andrew. The guy was a total pervert and obsessed with Starfire. But he was over twenty and legally on his own. Most people could tell that the raffle was rigged now and some groaned to themselves about being stupid enough to buy the tickets.

Beast Boy got some nice woman in her late twenty's who'd really bought the ticket only to help the charity it was for. That one hadn't been fixed and some of the earlier grumbles faded. But when Robin was raffled off to Candy, the room was a buzz.

"And that only leaves Miss Raven! And this lovely young woman goes to...Zeke Jones!" Raven felt her mouth drop as a very handsome guy around nineteen strolled over to her. It was Candy's other brother, the one that was so perverted it was making Raven sick just to look at him. His gaze never reached her eyes, only her chest which was heaving in an effort to not scream.

"Now dance!" Mr. Jones faded away as space was cleared for the Titans to all dance. Starfire looked like she was going to be sick as Andrew swept her around the floor like a rag doll. Beast Boy seemed content as he waltzed with his partner. Raven never even glanced at Robin, as Zeke was now holding her complete attention. His hands were wondering and she had to shift every few seconds or risk being groped in front of the cities most important people.

"You are really hot Raven." Zeke of the wondering hands finally spoke, something Raven had hoped he was incapable of.

"Thank you." Raven barely got the words out over her tight lipped smiled that was really a grimace. It was an unbearably long stretch of time, but finally the dance was over and Raven was allowed to step away. Taking a deep breath she turned back to lie and say it was a lovely dance when Zeke grabbed her chin and roughly pulled her up to kiss her full on the lips. Raven shoved him away as she felt his tongue try to gain access to her mouth, her face as bright as Starfire's hair. Whoops and laughter echoed in the building as Raven collected herself and walked back to the stage. Andrew took this as an opportunity to try and kiss Starfire. He never got the chance as Xavier "accidentally" spilled punch on his white tuxedo.

"My fault Mr. Jones." he mumbled, guiding Starfire to safety.

_'Her knight, where the hell was mine_?' Raven thought bitterly as Starfire came to the stage un-harmed. Beast Boy and Robin arrived with her. Mr. Jones took up the microphone once again.

"And now, we will announce the results of our T.N.T.!" the room gasped and Mr. Jones laughed.

"What I mean is, our Titan Nighttime Twirl! It was a survey you all filled out. Which of the Titans you see here would you like to see dance together!" Raven felt a sick feeling in her stomach and prayed that people had been kind and had made her Beast Boy's partner.

"And the pairs are: Beast Boy and..."

_'Please let it be me._' Raven thought with all her strength and felt it immediately sapped when she heard the next words.

"Starfire! That means Robin and Raven are partners." Starfire gave Raven a sympathetic look before she took Beast Boy's arm. He too was not smiling and knocked Robin with his broad shoulder on his way down to the floor. It was defiantly a 'watch what you say/do' nudge. Robin offered Raven his arm and she lightly placed a hand on it. She could feel the muscles twitching underneath it. She made the mistake of looking up at his face when they reached the floor. Even in the dimmed lighting she could see the smirk that was there right under his mask.

_'Please strike me dead now_!' The thought was playing like a broken record as Raven numbly placed her arms around Robin's neck and involuntarily shivered when he placed his hands on her hips. The dance wore on until Raven couldn't stand the silence that existed between them.

"You just loved that kiss didn't you?" that was not the question she had wanted.

"I hate you, you son of a bi-"

"Watch your mouth Raven dear, some very rich and important people here." Robin twirled her around and smiled like it was all a big joke.

"You really are a bas-"

"Careful or you'll be proclaimed a slut and a girl in need of some good vocabulary." Robin looked down and Raven felt the jerk when he saw the tears that had managed to spill over. Damn her learning to let emotions out!

"I hate you, I hate that I know you, I hate that you were my first kiss, I hate that you replaced me with some slut-bag! I hate that I let myself enjoy kissing you, I hate myself for kissing back! And I hate myself for thinking you ever gave a fuc-" Raven's whispers were cut short as the song ended and she pushed away. Grabbing Starfire, she ran towards the bathroom, something she'd never done before and had considered herself above.

* * *

"I hate him." Raven hissed as she splashed cold water onto her face. There was only half an hour left and she didn't give a rip if her make-up was smudged. 

"He's a real jerk." Starfire nodded and handed Raven a tissue. The alien had willingly stayed in the bathroom with Raven for the last forty-five minutes, listening and handing tissues over. In a small, secluded part of the bathroom, the two girls had sat and talked, something they hadn't done in a while.

"But he's wonderful in bed." the lilting voice made Raven's insides freeze and her fists clench as around the little wall came Candy.

"Don't you have some kittens to drown or some puppy's to kick?" Starfire asked icily, standing in front of Raven. Although she didn't get the puffy red eyes or even look remotely different, Raven hated to be seen when she cried.

"Not right now, right now I'm working on your sweet Xavier, Miss Warrior Woman." Candy smirked and Starfire clenched her fists.

"If you have touched him-"

"Oh he wouldn't let me. Not until I told him how you'd gone in here not to comfort the Dark Freak, but to get away from him. Oh he loved the attention I gave him then." Candy laughed and moved away from the door as Starfire rushed out without thinking. Candy turned around and moved towards Raven with malice in each step.

"What do you want?" Raven snarled, finally looking up at the girl who only stood at 5'3" to Raven's 5'7".

"I really only wanted Robin because you had him, I didn't love him at all, he was something to do. But now, I want to make you pay. Robin is mine and I want him to get over you so we can have sex without you coming into his mind. So now, I'm gunna give you the chance to leave. Pack up and leave Jump City, go do your voodoo or witchcraft somewhere else, and leave my boy alone." Candy had lost the laugh in her voice, it was as hard and cold as frozen steel.

"And why would I do that? Robin is over me, your just a control freak who thinks she needs to eliminate the competition that doesn't exist." Raven stood up and moved towards the door. Candy stepped in her way.

"Move Girl." Raven narrowed her eyes and was about to push her out of the way when a hard slap brought stars spinning around Raven's head.

"Step back Goth." Candy wasn't expecting the fist that crashed into her chin, nor was she expecting that blood would flow from her busted lower lip.

"Daddy's Girl!" Raven got a fist in her stomach but didn't let herself flinch.

"Freak!" Candy received a bloody nose.

"Princess!"

"Witch!"

The scuffle erupted into a full fledged brawl as Starfire and Candy's mother rushed into the bathroom. The whole ballroom had heard Candy's scream as Raven gave her nose another smack.

"Cease!" the shout made both girls stop and push apart. Raven had a swelling eye, a little blood from her lip, and a few scratches from Candy's nails, but she would be ok. Candy's damage was much worse then Raven's, two fat lips, a broken looking nose, blood from her scalp where her chopsticks had deeply scratched her. Candy also stood up to find a massive hole in her dress right on her chest area. She screeched and clutched at the ripped fabric, willing it to cover her bare self.

"I'm leaving." Raven pushed past the crowd that had gathered to look in the bathroom and out past the very hushed ballroom. Starfire came after her and Beast Boy followed with Terra. Robin caught up with Raven on the steps going to the street.

"Raven! What the hell happened?" Raven turned to look at the boy she had loved and felt an odd sensation burning in her. She'd lost him because he was weak and wanted sex. He had never loved her if that was all it took to get him away. His hand was on her shoulder and she felt sick.

"You are standing much too close to me Boy Wonder."

"Raven what the hell-" Robin fell backwards as Raven's well aimed punch caught him on the side of his head.

"Never speak to me, look at me, or touch me again on pain of death." With that, Raven fled down the steps as the clock chimed midnight.

'_Some Cinderella._' She thought, hailing a taxi and riding home as her tears escaped and she was back in rags.

* * *

Raven sat on her bed, her dress still on and her eye burning. Her lip had dry, cracking blood on it and whenever she moved it, fresh blood flowed. Starfire, Beast Boy, Cyborg, and Bumblebee had all come by to try and talk. None had gotten threw to the numb titan. A knock came and Raven hit the button that opened her door. Terra stood there, her yellow dress hidden under a black silk bathrobe. 

"Hi Rae." She mumbled, sitting on the edge of the bed, her usual spark gone.

"Terra." Raven didn't hate her anymore, but Terra was depressed too and that was the ultimate downer. Terra was always happy now.

"Don't waste tears on him, I mean, it's not like you loved him." Terra was playing a dangerous game she knew, getting Raven to admit she loved him so that she could stop the tape recorder hidden in her robe.

"That's the problem Terra, I did love him. Please go away." Raven's voice was barely a squeak and she turned on her side away from her blonde friend. Terra nodded and stepped lightly out of the room as Raven cried herself to sleep.

* * *

Terra and Xavier met outside Robin's room where the dark-haired leader of the Titans had barricaded himself inside. 

"Have the tape?" Xavier asked Terra who nodded and handed it to him. Xavier smiled and handed Terra a tape as well.

"He was hard to crack, but I got it. Play it in her room, I'll play this in his." Xavier turned and slipped down the hall, quiet as a shadow. Terra followed suit, though she went the opposite way. Two former criminals were trying to patch up something that was on the brink of war. They would need luck and a lot of gum.

* * *

Raven woke up at around four A.M. to the sounds of someone cursing as they passed her room. She shifted and felt her head protest as her black eye and lip throbbed. Something hard and box shaped poked at Raven's feet. She crawled forwards to pick it up and saw that it was a tape recorder. She hit play, thinking it might be a gift from Starfire to help her sleep. That was probably the cursing, pacing person outside her door. 

Raven hit play and lay back, the tape player right by her ear. What she heard shocked her.

Xavier- "Who do you think would have won had Mrs. Jones not come in."

Robin- "Raven, duh."

Xavier- "How are you so sure?"

Robin- "Cause Raven's so much more talented and stronger then that bitch Candy."

Xavier- "I thought you loved Candy?"

Robin- "Ya right! She's blackmailing me to stay with her. We had sex once when I was drunk and now I'm stuck with her."

Xavier- "So if you don't love Candy, why are you so rude to Raven?"

Robin- "Because it's easier then being nice and seeing her smile and then I feel….."

Xavier- "You feel?"

Robin- "Look Xavier, I love Raven, but I can't do anything about it! I don't want to be known as the Titan that did it with the Jones's daughter and then dumped her. So until Candy gets tired of me, I'm stuck. Plus, Raven will never take me back. I don't deserve to be forgiven anyways. Go away Xavier, I'm tired."

Xavier- "Fine, bye Robin."

The tape clicked off and Raven sat up, trembling.

"He does care." She whispered just as a knock came on her door. Raven stood up and gingerly walked toward it. She was stiff from sleeping in a ballroom gown and from her fight with Candy. She opened the door and stepped back in shock when she saw it was Robin.

"Hey, um, can I come in?" he mumbled, rubbing his neck with one hand as he looked at the floor.

"Sure." Raven stepped back and turned around, doing her best to not show the fight had taken a toll on her as she sat back on her bed. Robin stood in front of her and looked at the tape recorder Raven held on her lap.

"So they taped me too." He sighed and sat on a chair that was next to an ancient bookcase.

"I'm guessing what I talked to Terra about is what you heard." Raven muttered, not looking up.

"Ya."

"Ok."

The awkward silence hung in the air for a few minutes before Robin cleared his throat.

"She, um, dumped me. Candy I mean."

"Oh?"

"Ya, she said I shouldn't have defended you when she was saying stuff on the way to the hospital. Called me about half an hour ago." Robin gave a sort of barking laugh.

"Are you upset?" Raven asked, finally looking up. Her violet eyes found Robin's, though his seemed white from the mask he always wore.

"Not at all. What I said on that tape Raven," he paused and then stood up and sat beside Raven on her bed, "I meant every word."

Raven gasped as Robin kissed her on the neck. She shivered as his kiss moved upwards but pushed him away. Robin looked hurt and bewildered until Raven pointed to her bottom lip which was still swollen.

"Right, we should probably take it slow anyways." Raven nodded and looked down.

"Night Rae." Robin stood up and was moving forwards when Raven began to sing softly.

"_I was sitting on my doorstep,  
I hung up the phone and it fell out of my hand,  
But I knew I had to do it,  
And he wouldn't understand,  
So hard to see myself without him,  
I felt a piece of my heart break,  
But when you're standing at a crossroad,  
There's a choice you gotta make._

_I guess it's gunna have to hurt,  
I guess I'm gunna have to cry,  
And let go of some things I've loved,  
To get to the other side,  
I guess it's gunna break me down,  
Like falling when you try to fly,  
It's sad, but sometimes moving on with the rest of your life,  
Starts with goodbye. _

_I know there's a blue horizon,  
Somewhere up ahead, just waiting for me,  
Getting there means leaving things behind,  
Sometimes life's so bitter sweet _

_I guess it's gonna have to hurt,  
I guess I'm gonna have to cry,  
And let go of some things I've loved,  
To get to the other side,  
I guess it's gonna break me down,  
Like falling when you try to fly,  
It's sad, but sometimes moving on with the rest of your life,  
Starts with goodbye _

_Time, time heals,  
The wounds that you feel,  
Somehow, right now _

_I guess it's gonna have to hurt,  
I guess I'm gonna have to cry,  
And let go of some things I've loved,  
To get to the other side,  
I guess it's gonna break me down,  
Like falling when you try to fly,  
It's sad, but sometimes moving on with the rest of your life,  
Starts with goodbye." _

"Why do you say that Rae?" Robin asked, coming back and wiping away a tear that had slowly rolled down Raven's pale cheek.

"Because, Robin, we've tried this. It doesn't work. Maybe we should just say good-bye." Raven looked up and felt more tears spill over. She had to do this. She loved him to much to let him go again and she knew she'd have to. She had to get to the other side, get past this crossroad. Life was bittersweet. And it was going to hurt so badly. But Robin just kissed her gently and walked to the door.

"It only starts with goodbye Rae, I'll make sure it doesn't end with it." The door closed and both teens knew that it wouldn't be that way forever. One day, it would open again. It was only the start after all.

* * *

So, what do you all think? Is it ok? This is my first Raven and Robin fic, and I'm finding out I like the pairs. It's fun to mix it up every once in a while. But if I'm ever to write this pair again, I'll need some reviews that aren't total flames. If you think my story is breaking a rule, please contactme before reporting it. I really like this story and don't want to see my wrok thrown away.And by the way, for people who want to know what F.O.B. means, hehe: 

F- Fu!k

O- Off

B- Bit!h

Lovely term isn't it? Please review.

-Sintari


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